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2006 DIGILAW 453 (JHR)

Nandi Devi v. State Of Bihar (Now Jharkhand)

2006-04-25

N.DHINAKAR, RAKESH RANJAN PRASAD

body2006
JUDGMENT 1. The appellant, Nandi Devi, was tried for an offence of murder on the allegation that she committed the murder of her husband Etwa Tuti on 3.4.1994 in the village Bera within the police jurisdiction of Bandu. The Trial Judge, accepting the prosecution case, found the appellant guilty and sentenced her to imprisonment for life. She was also sentenced to imprisonment for three years under Section 201 I.P.C. The present appeal is against the said conviction and sentence. 2. P.W.2 Joel Tuti is the cousin of the deceased Etwa Tuti and the appellant is the wife of the deceased. About ten years prior to the incident, the deceased Etwa Tuti went to Assam to earn his livelihood and met Nandi Devi, a girl from the village Tilma in the district of Ranchi. He married her and later both of them returned to village where they were living together. They had no issues, on account of which there were quarrels between the appellant and the deceased. 3. On 6.4.1994 Jhagru Tuti, finding some foul smell emanating from the house of his brother, went there and found the doors locked. He peeped through the door which was in the rear side and saw the dead body of his brother lying on the ground with an injury on the head. The appellant was not found in the house. P.W.2 thereafter came and saw the body inside the house. The villagers gathered and the door was opened. They went to the house and found the deceased lying dead with an injury on the head. The body was found swollen and from the signs noted on the dead body, the villagers including P.Ws.2 and 4 realized that Etwa Tuti must have been murdered 2 or 3 days prior to 6.4.1994. Thereafter P.W.2 went to the police station and gave fardbeyan, Ext.2, on the basis of which a crime was registered and investigation was taken up by P.W.9 Sita Ram Singh. While the investigation was proceeding, P.Ws.2 and 4 went in search of the appellant and they went to the village Tilma, which is the native village of the appellant. She was found in the village and on being questioned by the witnesses, she told them that she has committed the murder of her husband Etwa Tuti. While the investigation was proceeding, P.Ws.2 and 4 went in search of the appellant and they went to the village Tilma, which is the native village of the appellant. She was found in the village and on being questioned by the witnesses, she told them that she has committed the murder of her husband Etwa Tuti. She also told them that after inflicting the blow on the deceased with Tangi, she had thrown it in a Bamboo groove. Later, the police was informed, who recovered the said Tangi by preparing a seizure list in which the witnesses have signed. 4. After the inquest, the body was sent for post mortem with a requisition requesting the Doctor to conduct autopsy. 5. On receipt of the requisition, the Doctor conducted autopsy and he found an abrasion on the right knee in the middle and also in left front on the left leg and in front on left knee. Lacerated wounds were found in the middle of right ankle and in left temporal and in left occipital region of head. On internal examination, the Doctor found the defused contusion of left temporoperietar scalp and left temporalis muscle. The Doctor also found depression and commuted fracture of left temporoperietal bone measuring 7x6 c.m. with laceration of brain. The Doctor issued Ext.5, the post mortem certificate, with his opinion that death is on account of the injuries and the said injuries would have been caused by hard and blunt substance. 6. After the completion of investigation, final report was filed against the appellant, who denied all the incriminating circumstances. She did not examine any witness on her side. 7. Mr. Binod Singh, who was appointed as Amicus Curiae, submits that the prosecution having relied on circumstantial evidence did not establish all the links in the chain of circumstances and the evidence of P.Ws.2 and 4 by itself is not sufficient to find the appellant guilty. He, therefore, prays for an acquittal. We have heard Mr. Shekhar Sinha, learned Counsel appearing for the State. 8. The post mortem certificate, Ext.5, and the injuries found noted therein conclusively show that Etwa Tuti died on account of homicidal violence, which fact was neither disputed before the trial court, nor is it disputed before this Court. 9. He, therefore, prays for an acquittal. We have heard Mr. Shekhar Sinha, learned Counsel appearing for the State. 8. The post mortem certificate, Ext.5, and the injuries found noted therein conclusively show that Etwa Tuti died on account of homicidal violence, which fact was neither disputed before the trial court, nor is it disputed before this Court. 9. The prosecution before the trial court, in order to establish that the appellant, who is the wife of the deceased Etwa Tuti, murdered her husband, relied upon circumstantial evidence. According to the prosecution, the deceased left his village for Assam about 10 years from the date of occurrence and married Nandi Devi, a girl from the village Tilma within the district of Ranchi and both of them were living together for some time at Assam and returned to the native village and were residing in the village of Bera. They had no issues and hence there used to be quarrels between the appellant and the deceased. This aspect of the prosecution case is spoken to by P.W.1, the informant, and P.W.4, the cousin of the deceased. The case of the prosecution is that on 6.4.1994, P.W.4 Jhagru Tuti, finding his brother not seen in the village and also finding foul smell emanating from the house of his brother, went there and found the door locked from outside. Therefore, he went to the backyard and through the window, which was on the rear side, peeped into the house and found his brother lying on the ground with injuries. In the meantime, P.W.2, who came there, also found the deceased lying dead in the house, which was closed from outside. The appellant was not seen anywhere near the scene of occurrence, nor she was seen available in the village. Thereafter the villagers, after opening the door went inside, found the dead body of the deceased and realizing that he must have been murdered, went to the police station and gave the complaint to the police authorities. In the said complaint, P.W.2 Joel Tuti has also mentioned that the deceased must have been murdered by his wife Nandi Devi and that she must have left the house after the murder. In the said complaint, P.W.2 Joel Tuti has also mentioned that the deceased must have been murdered by his wife Nandi Devi and that she must have left the house after the murder. It is the further case, as could be seen from the evidence, that after the complaint was registered, P.Ws.2 and 4 went in search of Nandi Devi and they went to the village Tilma where they found her. On being questioned, she admitted to the witnesses that she murdered her husband. The statement of the appellant made to P.Ws.2 and 4 is admissible in terms of Section 24 of the Evidence Act. Apart from the witnesses, the appellant has also stated that after the occurrence, she threw the Tangi in the bamboo grove. The police was informed, who, on reaching the village and after arresting her, recovered the said Tangi. The evidence of P.Ws.2, 3 and 4 shows that the deceased and the appellant were living in the village Bera and that on 6.4.1994, the deceased was found lying dead with injuries inside the house, which was locked from outside. It also shows that the appellant was not present anywhere in the village. In the above circumstances, it is for the appellant to explain as to what happened to her husband as she was living with her husband till the dead body was found on 6.4.1994. She had no explanation to offer. Non- explanation and flat denial of all the circumstances put to her under Section 313 Cr.P.C are additional links in the chain of circumstances against the appellant. There are also materials which could be seen from the evidence of P.Ws.2, 3 and 4 that the appellant admitted the offence and that the Tangi was later recovered by the police. The evidence of the Investigating Officer further shows that there was an attempt to wipe out the blood inside the house by cleaning the floor with cow dung. If the appellant did not commit the murder of her husband, then she would not have left the house without informing anyone and there could not have been tell tales signs of the murder having taken place inside the house which was attempted to be screened by the appellant who tried to erase them by using cow dung. The evidence clearly shows that the prosecution has established all the links in the chain of circumstances. The evidence clearly shows that the prosecution has established all the links in the chain of circumstances. We find no merit in this appeal, which is accordingly dismissed.